40 Tips and Curiosities about this Pet!

Incredible as it may seem, the guinea pig is not even a guinea pig, let alone a pig from India.

This very cute little animal is part of the rodent family and it comes from the Andes Mountains in South America.

Its name came up because, many years ago, these rodents came from what was called the “West Indies,” an ancient name for the American continent.

Identifying the sex of the guinea pig is not one of the easiest tasks.

To find out, you’ll have to turn the little pig upside down. When you press the upper region of the male, the small organ will show (in “I” shape).

Females, on the other hand, have a Y-shaped genital area – and if you press them, nothing will happen.

Although this may seem disgusting to us, the little guinea pigs need to eat a little bit of their feces.

This characteristic is found in other rodents like rabbits and it happens because the feces present a series of essential nutrients like vitamin B and certain minerals as well as helping in the recovery of the intestinal flora.

The guinea pigs are herbivorous animals, that is, they feed exclusively on vegetables.

Today it is possible to find a wide variety of rations and the tip is to choose those specific to that animal.

Consider your piggy’s age and activity level and always analyze if the chosen feed has good vitamin C levels.

In addition to rations, there are other foods that you can offer your guinea pig.

For example fresh fruit and vegetables, which can be offered daily to the pet, and a dose of hay, which helps the functioning of the intestines of rodents.

In the case of pregnant piglets and puppies, a good idea is to offer alfalfa that has plenty of calcium. For adult pigs, it should only be given sporadically, like a snack.

Some food, however, even natural, should not be offered to the guinea pigs.

The main ones to avoid are: potatoes, carrots, figs, beans, cabbage, cauliflowers, grapes, oats, barley, seeds, bread, parsley and sunflower seeds.

And, of course, avoid giving human food to your little pig or he may become intoxicated and even die. For example: meat, animal derivatives, sweets, mushrooms, coffee, salt, avocado, sugar, onion, preserves, mint, etc.

If you don’t know what food to offer your guinea pig, you can change the menu to understand which items he likes best.

Good ideas are: lettuce, escarola, dandelion, rocket and peppers.

Fruit and vegetables can be offered twice a week, for example: orange, apple, banana, peach, tomato, zucchini, celery and broccoli.

It is important to choose a cage that is the right size for your guinea pig to sleep, eat and play in.

According to the recommendations of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty Animals, the ideal is a cage with minimum measurements of 120 x 60 x 45 centimeters.

Remember that this minimum size is for 1 guinea pig. If you have more, opt for a bigger cage. The best cage is the one with wire and flat bottom.

The guinea pigs love to have fun, so it’s cool to include some items inside the cage.

So he can sleep soundly, buy a little house. For him to have fun and not get bored, include toys and edible hiding places. The toys need to be suitable for them, of material that can be swallowed.

Also, remember to use hygienic pellet granules, food bowls and water troughs.

There are many mistakes when assembling the cage that can put the health of your little Indian pig at risk.

One tip is to avoid using aquariums, terrariums and plastic boxes in place of the cage, because these items offer poor ventilation and excess moisture that can cause disease.

Toys must not be painted with toxic paints (which must not be swallowed) and must not be made of treated wood. You should also avoid using cat sand as a substrate for the cage because it has a lot of limestone and is aggressive to piglets.

The guinea pigs are sociable animals and it is important that they do not just stay in the cage so they do not feel lonely and depressed.

Take your pet out of its cage every day, talk to it, care for it, carry it and play with it.

Make sure you have time in your daily routine for this care. You can teach some tricks like standing, spinning, rolling etc. as they are very smart. One tip to avoid depression is to buy two little pigs, so they will always have company.

The cage needs to be cleaned at least once a week.

In this cleaning, remove the waste, fodder, feed and toys and clean them with an antibacterial solution suitable for animals. Then change the fodder.

In addition, you need to supplement the care with a cage disinfection once a month.

A very important tip is to try to position the cage in a place with mild temperatures (between 18ºC and 24ºC).

Avoid leaving the cages outdoors, because the little guinea pigs are very susceptible to cold.

Also be careful with places where there is a lot of cold air and direct sunlight.

Did you know there’s a sure way to get the guinea pig so he doesn’t get hurt?

Ideally, you should start by holding the animal by the pelvic area which should be supported in your hand and, with the other hand, support the breast area, offering support to the front legs.

If you raise your piggy from a young age, get him used to your lap very early, so he won’t get agitated and hurt himself. Pigs are very sensitive and jumps can generate injuries. Never hold the piggy by the neck or armpits!

Many people don’t know, but every now and then the little guinea pigs need to bathe, especially the longhaired breeds.

To do this, use warm water and be very careful not to hurt yourself. Use a shallow container and wet only from the neck down, being careful not to get water in the ear.

Then use proper shampoo for rodents and rinse well. Dry with a towel or dryer. Remember that baths should be quite sporadic, at most a few times a year.

Although baths are not as frequent, hair care should be done more often.

It is recommended to brush the hair of your guinea pig up to twice a week.

In the case of the short-haired piggies, this process can be more spaced out.

Just like humans, the fingernails of guinea pigs grow continuously. As they live in captivity, they may have nowhere to spend their nails, leading to excessive growth.

So know that you’ll need to cut your little piggy’s fingernails sometime.

It is recommended to make the cut every month, but you must be careful because if you cut too short you may bleed. If you don’t know how to do it, ask your vet for help.

Besides the nails, the teeth of the guinea pigs also grow constantly, after all they are rodents.

Therefore, it is important to include toys that facilitate wear and tear.

If this is not done, you will have to take it to the vet for a scrape, as it will be difficult for the guinea pig to eat with their long teeth.

The guinea pigs can also get sick and it is the role of the guardian to identify the symptoms of concern and take the animal to the vet.

Some signs that indicate diseases are: changes in appetite or behavior, lethargy, weakness, swollen and stiff joints, diarrhea, mucus in the eyes or snouts, rough coat, difficulty walking, among others.

If that happens, take your pet to the vet immediately. Pigs disguise themselves very well when they are sick and often, when we notice the signs, they are already very sick. So be aware of your pet’s changes.

As we said, the guinea pigs are very sociable, and if you don’t pay attention to yours, it can get depressed and sick.

So the recommendation is always to buy more than one guinea pig. A tip when making this choice is to try to buy animals that are related to each other to avoid fighting.

Also remember that males and females can mate. So if that’s not your idea, buy two females or two males. And always introduce the guinea pigs to avoid fighting.

The guinea pig is a very smart animal and if he is trained early he can learn some tricks.

You can train him to know when to expect food, call him with a whistle, teach him to jump, stand up and many other tricks.

The important thing is to start when he is even younger, since the chances of learning are greater.

Females can start breeding at only 4 weeks of age, while males are considered sexually mature from the third week of age.

Females’ heat lasts 15 to 17 days.

During this period, a mucous membrane inside the female vaginal canal dissolves and allows copulation.

It is important to point out that pregnancy and childbirth can bring serious complications to females, so do not let the little pigs procreate if you do not know about it.

Some of the most common complications are: death of fetuses and offspring, poisoning and the need for a caesarian section.

Litters are composed of 2 to 5 offspring and weaning is done between 15 and 21 days of age.

Unfortunately, the little guinea pigs don’t live long.

The average life expectancy of these animals is 4 to 8 years.

However, there is one little piggy that managed to overcome this goal: Snowball who lived for 14 years and 10 months and died in 1979. He is considered the oldest Indian pig in the world.

Did you know that the little guinea pigs aren’t all the same?

The breeds are differentiated mainly by coat and there are 3 most common. They are: Abyssinian (rose-shaped hair), English short hair (very common species with uniform hair) and Angora (similar to the first, but with longer hair).

Other breeds are: sheltie (flat and long hair), silkie (when the hair is combed it stays in a drop shape) and Peruvian (very long hair and with fatter little pigs).